The present invention relates generally to an apparatus for supporting an arm, and more particularly to an apparatus for supporting an arm during medical procedures such as radial catheterization and carpal tunnel procedures.
While the apparatus may be used in various medical procedures, for clarity, the below discussion will be limited to cardiac catheterization. It should be appreciated that cardiac catheterization is being used as an example of a medical procedure only and that the apparatus may be used in other medical procedures, such as carpal tunnel procedures, that require an arm of a patient to be secured and positioned for that procedure.
Cardiac catheterization is a medical procedure used to diagnose heart conditions. The catheterization typically involves one of two types of catheterization—femoral and radial. See FIGS. 1 and 2. In general, the catheterization process uses a thin, flexible tube that is put into a blood vessel in the arm or in the groin region of a patient to allow a dye to be injected into the vessel and allow a doctor to detect blockages via an x-ray or to remove a blockage using a Coronary Stent.
In comparison to femoral catheterization, radial catheterization has a higher accidental catheter removal rate, takes about 10 minutes longer to complete, and requires a higher technical skill from the doctor; however, radial catheterization also has the benefits of the patient being able to sit up and move around immediately after the procedure, a shorter recovery time, less risk of bleeding complications, less risk of vascular complications, and seems to be preferred by both the patient and the Cardiovascular Technologist.
The radial catheterization process requires several steps. In general, they are (1) place extension board on side of x-ray table; (2) position patient on the x-ray table and prep patient; (3) clean area where the catheter is to be inserted; (4) lay down sterile towels and drape cloth over patient so that only operation site is visible; (5) numb the operation area; (6) placement of catheter; (7) inject dye into artery to check for blockages; (8) if no blockage, remove the catheter while leaving a sheath; (9) place a TR band over the artery/sheath and pump air into the TR band to apply pressure while sheath is slowly removed; (10) placing a wrist support on the patient to prevent the patient from moving their wrist; (11) remove the patient from the x-ray table and take them back to their room for one hour; (12) after one hour, nurse lets out three milliliters of air every fifteen minutes until all air is out; and (13) patient is discharged but must leave the wrist support on for 24 hours.
One of the major areas of improvement needed in the radial catheterization process is in item (2) above. In particular, the step of prepping the patient requires the patients arm to be properly positioned for insertion of the catheter. The arm support system currently used is expensive and has to be thrown away after each use, is not very stable and often cumbersome, and requires the patients hand to be taped down to secure it to the support, resulting in a less than ideal situation that is very inefficient.
More particularly, the current arm support system uses a foam pad about four inches thick that is placed on the extension board to keep the patient's arm at a level even with his/her body. A towel is rolled up and placed under the patient's wrist to flex the wrist and the patient's hand is then taped down.
Accordingly, an apparatus for supporting an arm during a medical procedure, such as radial catheterization, that improves efficiency and stability of the arm is needed.